Trap nest



D. M. BAKER.

TRAP NEST.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 5, 1919.

1 ,41 1 ,397, Patented Apr. 4, 1922.

w a H a a 3 El uvmboz PATENT OFFICE.

DONALD M. BAKER, or coLUMisiis, 0310.

TBA]? ease.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed May 5, 1919. Serial ivofieeessa To aZZ 107mm it may concern eliicient device For entrapping a hen within the nest so that a poultry raiser may obtain accurate information as to the laying qualities of every hen, in order that the nonproducersmay be weeded out and the paying hens kept. To this end, the invention comprises, among other features, a trap nest wherein an entrance is provided which is adapted. to be closed by a swinging door,

said door being normally maintained in an elevated position by means of a pivoted trip structure, said latter structure being located interiorly or the nest so that as a hen enters the trip structure will be engaged thereby and the door released so as to gravitate into a position closing the trap entrance, thus ell'ectually preventing the es cape ol the hen until properly released.

Another object of the invention resides in forming the nest in a plurality of separable sections, in order that upon separating the sections the interior of said nest will be rendered conveniently accessible so that vermin may be readily eliminated and the nest maintained in a sanitary condition.

In the accompanying drawing, wherein a structure has been shown capable of carrying out the principles of the invention:

Figure 1 is a :Eront elevation of the trap nest,

Figure 2 is a side elevation thereof,

4 Figure 3 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view taken through the nest and illustrating the door member in its open position,

Figure 4 is a similar view disclosing the door member in its lower or entrance closing position,

Figure 5 is a detail perspective view of the door member, and

Figure'G is a similar view of the latch or trip structure. I

Similar characters of reference denote like and corresponding parts throughout the several views of the drawing.

Referring'more particularly to the strucsired.

ture of the invention as the same is set forth in the drawing, the numeral 1 designates in its entirety the trap nest con prising the invention; This nest is formed to include a pair of upper and lower separablese'ctioiis 2 and 3 respectively, and when assembled said sections provide a. setting chamber at and an entrance opening 5*. Rigid 'cleat members 6 are carried by the rearward corners of the upper section 2, and have theirlower ends protruded so as to lie within the confines of the lower section and meet adjacent to the corners of the latter. Said cleat members serve to effect an aligned positioning of the upper section upon said lower section and also act in the capacity of hinges, by permitting said upper section to be revolved circumferentially with respect to the lower section, the lower ends of said members serving as fulcrums to effeet the pivotal swinging movement of said upper section. This construction is favored because of its simplicity and by the fact that it eliminates the use of metallic hinges, thus lowering the cost of fabricating the nest.

Hinges, however, may be provided if de- It will be noted that the outer faces of the nest are perfectly plain and smooth, from which all objectionable extensions or protuberances are eliminated. This construction is effective in positioning a. plurality of the nests in contiguous and immediately adjacent relation, practically side by side or in tiers, in order that nests assembled in this manner will occupy but a minimum of space. Pivoted latches 7 may be carried by the nest in order to maintain the sections 2 and 3 in secured relation Positioned to cover the opening 5 is a door member 8, which is employed and mounted to permit a hen to readily enter the'nest, but after entering to close whereby the escape of the hen from the nest will be. prevented, this being done in order to obtain a record of thelaying qualities of a hen. The door member 8 in this instance is formed to include a pair of spaced side rails 9 to which are secured an intervening plate member 10 either of a solid or reticulated form. and the upper ends of the rails 9 are horizontally apertured to receive a removable rod 11. This rod extends transversely of the nest and has its ends journaled within the side walls of the. section 2 at points preferably contiguous to the upper portion of the entrance'5. It willbe apparent from Patented Apr. 4, 1922.

portion of the structure. 13 is provided with ture 13.

this that left to itself the door member will gravitate to a closed position, its swinging movement in a downward direction being limited by means of a stop plate 12, Which latter serves to prevent said door member from being swung outwardly of the nest. In; other words, the door member is permitted to swing only on an are located within the interior of the nest. To'maintain'said door member in an elevated position in order that a hen mayreadily gain access to the chamber 4 of the nest, use ismade of apivoted trip or latch struc- This structure in its preferred adaptation consists of an L shaped portion 14 which is mounted transversely of the nest and is supported for swinging movement by means of spaced eyes 15 which, in turn, are mounted for freely swinging movement on a removable transversely extending rod 16, the ends of the latter being journaledwithin the ,side Walls of the section 2; The lower a; shelf 17 which extends angularly from the body of the portion 14. Spaced cleats 18 extend downwardly from the structure 13 and depend within the chamber 4, so that the entrance of a hen into the latter will, by strikingthe cleats 18, oscillate the structure 13 as a Whole. V

In operation, in order to set thenest to receive a hen, the member 8 is swung to assume the open position disclosed in Figure 3, so that the lower edge of said door memher will rest upon the shelf 17 in order that said door member will be maintained in an elevated position whereby entrance into the nest will be unobstructed. lVhen the parts are thus set, a hen upon reaching the chamher 4 will be obliged-to contact with one or the other'or both .of the depending cleats 18, which will result in the oscillation of the trip structure so as to effect the release of the door mernber. Thus, when the shelf 17 is freed from engagement with the end of said door member, the latter will be caused to gravitate by its own weight to a closed position so that the entrance 5 will be effectively covered to prevent the escape of the entrapped hen. The stop plate 12, it will be apparent, not only limits the swinging movement of the door member, but also prevents the door from being-opened by an outwardly directed pressure. Of course, by extending the length of the door member so that the latter wouldcontact with the upper edge of the panel 19 of the lower section 3, the use of said platelQ could be eliminated. Again, a baflle member 20 is located.

within the lower section 3 at a point not far" but spaced from the panel 19. This 'baflle member prevents a hen from setting at a point near the entrance 5 which, if done, would prevent the trip structure from being actuated. However, through the useof said baffle member the hen will be obliged before settlng to enter the nest a sufficient distance to actuate the trip structure, thus rendering the operation of the nest thoroughly reliable.

The nest so constructed as to be capable of being assembled with other nests of like construction in multiple tier formation, so that a maximumnumber of nests may be placed within the usual limited confines of hen houses. rrgain, by forming the nest of to further facilitate the cleansing of the nest and the maintaining ofthe same in a sanitary condition. Again, the mechanism for controlling the operation of the door member 8 is of a very simple and 'eflicient nature, and its operation is rendered reliable and positive through the co-operation of the baffle member 20.

What I claim is:

1. A trap nest comprising a pair of separable upper and lower sections having registering openings formed in certain ofthe walls thereof, said openings serving to define an entrance to said nest when said sections are in assembled relation, a pivoted door structure for said entrance, and a pair of cleat members rigidly carried by the up perv of said sections, said members projecting downwardly within said lower section to retain the sections in assembled relation, and said downwardly extending projections further serving in the capacity of fulcrums to permit of the swinging of said upper section relative to the lower section.

2. A. trap nest comprising a pair of separable upper and lower sections having registering openings formed in the front ends thereof to provide an entrance to the nest, an offset member rigidly carried by the upper section and disposed lnteriorly of the latter contiguous to the rear lower edge.

thereof, said member being downwardly extended so as to he between the side walls of said lower section. whereby the alignment of said sections will be maintained by preventing lateral displacement thereof. said member being located entirely within said nest so that the same may be employed in the capacity of a fulcrum to permit of the oscillation of theupper section relative to thelower section, and interiorly actuated trap door mechanism co-operative with said entrance.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

DONALD M. BAKER. 

